This mornings news that Hostess Brands, Inc. was shutting its doors after 82 years of operation (originally under the name International Bakeries Corporation) has elicited a lot of commentary from various sources. Culturally, Im seeing a lot of people lament the fact that some of their favorite brands of snack food or bread  from Twinkies to Ho-Hos to Wonder Bread to Beefsteak Rye Bread  will no longer be available. Politically, theres been a definite theme on the right blaming the Bakers Union for the companys collapse since they would not agree to a modification of their contract notwithstanding the fact that they had been warned that this would happen, and that even the Teamsters Union warned them that they were risking the fate of the company and everyones jobs by being so stubborn. Both of these reactions strike me as being wildly over blown, based largely on common misunderstandings of what actually happens in Bankruptcy Court and the business world, and both miss the point that the death of Hostess Brands is a fairly good example of the free market in action.

According to the contract Hostess had with the union prior to filing for bankruptcy, shipments containing both bread and bakery items couldn't be shipped consolidated freight, they had to be made in two separate trucks.

Not to mention back when I was in St. Louis the Hostess bakery there was being attacked by the EPA and the econuts because -- get this- the odor of baking yeast bread. It smelled like heaven but as I recall there were regulations in play that were going to force the bakery to renovate to insure that no odiferous pleasantries were emitted that could delight the senses.

I think the issue is, the locations where the bakeries were enabled them to deliver fresher products to these markets ... don’t know if this was critical in their business model.

I buy chips made in North Carolina all the time in Washington.

So..

There can be a rational argument that the free market killed this company (we will never be able to prove or disprove this) but there is an absolute proven fact that the union kept them from having the flexibility for the Hostess company to have an opportunity to reinvent themselves to save these jobs.

"Both of these reactions strike me as being wildly over blown, based largely on common misunderstandings of what actually happens in Bankruptcy Court and the business world, and both miss the point that the death of Hostess Brands is a fairly good example of the free market in action."

The articles conclusions are false: The UNION and its goons killed Hostess, Twinkies and their cup cakes. The union THUGS who support Obozo thought they could roll Hostess and instead, Hostess told Obozo and his thug unionestas to "hit the road". They deserve everything that is coming to them. Once sold the new owners should move the entire operation to a "right to work state" and FIRE every union member that worked for Hostess and hire replacements for all of them.

The union workers had a chance to not only save their jobs, but save the Hostess company as well! Instead the union workers and the greedy union thugs chose to kill their own jobs and the company to boot! How in heavens name they could chose to do this to themselves and to their families in this totally failed and failing economy is beyond all reason and comprehension.

After their unemployment benefits all run out, the banks foreclose on their homes and these union workers lose everything, I hope they and their families enjoy living on the street, in their cars and in homeless shelters because they have no one to blame for the mess they are in but THEMSELVES. As for the union leadership THUG bosses who motivated them to take this delusional course of self destruction... they will still "land on their feet" and will as Hans Gruber so aptly put it; "We will be sitting on a beach, earning 20%."

Lord willing, other union workers will finally wake up, learn the "Hostess lesson" and realize that their union overlord, thug bosses do not care about them or the companies that employ them and pay their salary, but only care about themselves, their wealth and their power.

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